The 28 cm Haubitze L/12 was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

coastal defense and

siege A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteriz ...

howitzer. Developed by Krupp before

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

that saw service in both World War I and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Description

The ''28 cm Haubitze L/12 in Mittelpivotlafette C/92'' was a design of the late 19th century initially intended for coastal defense. The theory of operation was a low-velocity howitzer firing a large shell at a high-angle was more likely to destroy an enemy ship by penetrating its thin deck armor than a high-velocity low-angle gun attempting to penetrate its thicker

belt armor Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal armor plated onto or within the outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and aircraft carriers. The belt armor is designed to prevent projectiles from penetrating to ...

. The downside was that high-angle fire was harder to aim correctly so more howitzers would be needed to defend an area from attack. However, if the area was constrained by geography like a port at the mouth of a river the navigation channels could be measured ahead of time and firing ranges calculated. A complicating factor was as naval artillery progressed their size and range soon eclipsed its range. In the coastal defense role it was mounted on a large geared circular base that was set in concrete. There was also a thick armored dome to protect the gun crew. Recoil forces were absorbed by a combination of the gun cradle moving up an inclined plane and two hydro-pneumatic or

hydro-spring This article explains terms used for the British Armed Forces' ordnance (i.e.: weapons) and also ammunition. The terms may have slightly different meanings in the military of other countries. BD Between decks: applies to a naval gun mounting in w ...

recuperator cylinders, one on each side of the carriage. It fired a

high-explosive shell A shell, in a military context, is a projectile whose payload contains an explosive, incendiary, or other chemical filling. Originally it was called a bombshell, but "shell" has come to be unambiguous in a military context. Modern usage ...

to a range of and was capable of penetrating of deck armor at an angle of 63° at . The guns had an early form of the Krupp sliding block breech and used separate loading bagged charge and projectiles. In the

siege howitzer A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characterize ...

role it could be broken down into four loads, the barrel, cradle, turntable and firing platform, each carried by a three-axle trailer. It was mounted on a turntable which was fixed to a wooden firing platform and required three to four days to emplace for firing. An ammunition crane was fixed to the carriage for ease of loading.Gander and Chamberlain, p. 208

Combat history

World War I

During the First World War there was a four gun battery at the Bismark fortress that participated in the defense of the German colony of Tsingtao during the

Siege of Tsingtao The siege of Tsingtao (or Tsingtau) was the attack on the German port of Tsingtao (now Qingdao) in China during World War I by Japan and the United Kingdom. The siege was waged against Imperial Germany between 27 August and 7 November 1914. ...

in 1914. A four gun battery was also moved from the German port of

Wilhelmshaven Wilhelmshaven (, ''Wilhelm's Harbour''; Northern Low Saxon: ''Willemshaven'') is a coastal town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the western side of the Jade Bight, a bay of the North Sea, and has a population of 76,089. Wilhelmsh ...

to Blankenberge in Belgium to defend against an allied seaborne invasion. Prior to the Great War, in 1902, the

Portuguese monarchy This is a list of Portuguese monarchs who ruled from the establishment of the Kingdom of Portugal, in 1139, to the deposition of the Portuguese monarchy and creation of the Portuguese Republic with the 5 October 1910 revolution. Through the nea ...

bought several 28cm Krupp howitzers for equipping coastal artillery batteries at the mouth of the

river Tagus The Tagus ( ; es, Tajo ; pt, Tejo ; see below) is the longest river in the Iberian Peninsula. The river rises in the Montes Universales near Teruel, in mid-eastern Spain, flows , generally west with two main south-westward sections, to e ...

, serving as the main defensive guns for Lisbon's harbor. There were in total four batteries, two on the northern margin and two on the southern margin of the river. Despite operating on a 24-hour basis during the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, these batteries weren't capable of shooting at night, relying on other batteries of smaller calibre artillery for defending the capital.

World War II

Supposedly it saw action in the assault on Sevastopol in 1942 under the command of 11th Army of

Army Group South Army Group South (german: Heeresgruppe Süd) was the name of three German Army Groups during World War II. It was first used in the 1939 September Campaign, along with Army Group North to invade Poland. In the invasion of Poland Army Group So ...

, but this has not been confirmed. In a personal photo album, owned by former Mountain Troops general Gheorghe Manoliu, commander of the 4th Mountain Division, a piece of artillery that seems to be a Haubitze L/12 was identified in a picture taken during the battle for Sevastopol.

Weapons of similar era and performance

12-inch coast defense mortar The 12-inch coast defense mortar was a weapon of caliber emplaced during the 1890s and early 20th century to defend US harbors from seaborne attack. In 1886, when the Endicott Board set forth its initial plan for upgrading the coast defenses of ...

- A US coastal defense mortar. * 28 cm howitzer L/10 - A Japanese coastal defense howitzer based on an Armstrong design. *

Mortier de 270 mm modèle 1889 The Mortier de 270 mm modèle 1889 sur affût G was a heavy mortar originally employed as coastal artillery and later converted to the siege artillery role. Mle 1889 mortars were used in both the First world war and Second world wars. Hist ...

- A French coastal defense mortar * Obice da 280 - An Italian coastal defense howitzer based on an Armstrong design.

Photo Gallery

File:28-cm-Kuesten-Haubitze L-12.jpg, 28-cm-Küstenhaubitze L-12 (coastal howitzer) File:The_encyclopædia_britannica;_a_dictionary_of_arts,_sciences,_literature_and_general_information_(1910)_(14755479956).jpg, A picture of a coastal howitzer from encyclopedia britannica 1910. File:Battle_of_Tsingtao_German_Gun.jpg, One of the four 28 cm coastal howitzers at fort Bismarck Tsingtao. File:111-SC-37003 - NARA - 55233187 (cropped).jpg, One of the Blankenberge howitzers sabotaged by the retreating Germans.

Notes

References

* Engelmann, Joachim and Scheibert, Horst. ''Deutsche Artillerie 1934-1945: Eine Dokumentation in Text, Skizzen und Bildern: Ausrüstung, Gliederung, Ausbildung, Führung, Einsatz''. Limburg/Lahn, Germany: C. A. Starke, 1974 * Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. ''Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945''. New York: Doubleday, 1979 * Hogg, Ian V. ''German Artillery of World War Two''. 2nd corrected edition. Mechanicsville, PA: Stackpole Books, 1997 {{DEFAULTSORT:28 cm Haubitze L 12 World War I howitzers World War I artillery of Germany World War II artillery of Germany Siege artillery 280 mm artillery World War II howitzers Krupp